Where the Wind Takes Me
by Ming Yueh
Summary: She showed up in the desert on Wolfback. Tachibana saved her from HOLY who had been chasing her for many years now. Scheris seems to know her, what's the connection?
1. Out on the Desert: Kiba, the Fang

Disclaimer: I do not own _s_-_CRY_-_ed_.

Note: This story is an alternate universe.

_Where the Wind Takes Me_

Chapter One

Out on the Desert

_Kiba, the Fang_

"Crossover that way."

They didn't know it, but they were being watched by a pair of deep, light blue eyes; they were tinged in golden rings. She knew what they wanted, and that was her. She was in a small crevice out on the desert. She had hidden in there to try to get away from _them_.

The teenaged girl sighed. She tried to seldom use this; for once she did, she was no longer like herself. If she were ever cornered or afraid, she would be less like herself than ever.

The girl closed her sad eyes. She thought of things that angered her. She thought of how these people have been chasing her for so many years; how they had destroyed her life. A rainbow colored sheet momentarily outlined the girl's slim figure. She opened her eyes; they were no longer sad, but confident and piercing. Her long hair blasted upwards and wound itself into a collection of things: A Crescent Moon with a Ring, a Sun, and a Star inside.

She smiled and in less than a second a large, pure coal black Wolf was attacking the soldiers around where the crevice had been; the entire stone block had disintegrated. The black Wolf turned its head around. It opened its eyes wide and fire suddenly crashed into the crevice. The girl inside jumped out and landed next to the black Wolf. There was absolutely chaos outside; the HOLY members were screaming and squirming; scared that they would be killed, they began to panic.

* * *

"What the Hell is going on!" Two men, one a fat bald man, and the other a finely built man with Fire red hair sat inside the HOLY cars. "Get her you oafs!" The bald man shouted again. He was at the age of 49.

"Come on, give them a break." The red haired man stated; he was around the age of 17. "They're only ordinary humans. Besides, they're up against someone with a Demonic Altar."

"I don't care!" The bald man yelled "Get up there and catch that wretched girl!"

"Alright, alright, I'm going."

* * *

But the strange girl was already leaving. The large black Wolf seemed to have sprouted huge, red Phoenix wings. The girl jumped on and the two soared away.

A nearby rock disintegrated and the fire-haired man took aim at them. An arrow like stream of Fire shot out of the man's finger and shot straight through one of the black Wolf's Phoenix wings.

The black Wolf yelped and the two toppled over. The girl screamed as they plummeted towards the ground…

* * *

Ryuho turned to look in the direction of the desert. He had heard a scream and was puzzled about it.

"Ryu-kun, what's wrong?" Kanami asked

"Huh?" Ryuho looked down at the small girl "Oh, it's nothing."

Kanami looked at Ryuho for awhile before nodding. She walked into the small home Ryuho lived.

"Ryuho," Scheris said

"I know, I heard it too." Ryuho answered

"You don't think…That someone's in trouble do you?"

"All the same, we should check it out." Ryuho commented

"But…What about them?" Scheris beckoned towards the village below.

"They should be alright for a few minutes." Ryuho stated

Scheris nodded. The two stood and began to walk in the direction of the desert.

* * *

"Whew…" Tachibana wiped his brow. He was making his way up a steep hill from a stream below. His TachiBalls floated around his head, carrying various items.

"Huh?" Tachibana looked up to the top of the hill. He could hear whining and a couple of howls; it sounded like an animal. Tachibana quickly skirted the rest of the hill to see what was going on.

When Tachibana made it up to the top of the hill to the plains above, he noticed two large Wolves. Each was big enough to carry at least two people at one time.

One of them was on the ground. It was slightly larger than the other and could probably hold two adults and a child. It was dark black and had large Phoenix wings; this astounded Tachibana greatly. He also noticed that around the Wolf's right front ankle was a silver Crescent Moon.

The other Wolf nudged the black one with its muzzle. It was a silver Wolf and it too had wings, except this one's was large, green butterfly looking wings. It also had one black Ring around its left front ankle. The silver Wolf howled loudly as the black Wolf disintegrated into the Sunlight.

"Hah!" Tachibana said, shocked "An Altar!"

That's when he saw them. The two HOLY cars from before were approaching the silver Wolf in an alarming speed. This, like everything else that was happening right now, puzzled Tachibana greatly. Tachibana tried to think that HOLY wasn't after the Wolves and their Altar User. But then they opened fire upon them.

The silver Wolf grew angry and scared. It rose in the air snarling and growling dangerously; as frightening as it looked now, its forest green eyes were full of fear. It howled loudly again before attacking HOLY and their soldiers. The soldiers tried to fight back, but to no avail.

* * *

"Damn!" The bald man shouted "Damn it all! HOLY's been chasing The Fang for years now! And _I_ have been chasing her for **_nine_** years now!"

"Don't you mean 'NP3229'?" the fire-haired man asked. He looked at the screen that showed him the outside, "Besides, that's not The Fang. The Fang is black, not silver."

"Silver?" The bald man yelled "Silver? What the Hell happened to the black Wolf!"

"I dunno, but it's going to be fun trying to catch this one instead of NP3229."

"No, absolutely not! I've been chasing this girl since she was _five_! I know The Fang and her tricks! You don't know her like I do!"  
"Geez, somebody needs a new hobby." The fire-haired man commented

"Shut it, Kyoujou."

"Come on, Sashenka, can't you just call me Rakuen?" Rakuen asked

"Will you just get out there and catch that girl!" Sashenka shouted

"Fine, fine." Rakuen stated "The least you could do is say please." He added in a mumble

* * *

Rakuen stood and walked up a ladder leading to the top of the HOLY car. He spotted the silver Wolf and raised his arms. Rakuen pointed at the Wolf; who at the time was just finishing fainting the soldiers.

Tachibana heard the Wolf yelp. One of the Wolf's butterfly wings had been shot. The Wolf fell over, but it got back up. The Wolf pounced forward at Rakuen; that, however, was a mistake.

Rakuen pointed his index finger to make an even slenderer stream of fire. The spout of fire shot out in a flurry of heat. The stream of fire entered the Wolf just below its heart. The Wolf fell backwards and onto its side. Tachibana was on the scene in an instant.

Tachibana looked around to see where the Altar User was but found no one was there. Tachibana figured that these were Altar Animals from the Altar Forest. But Tachibana didn't have time to think about it much more for Rakuen was now pelting fire streams at them.

"Leave them alone!" Tachibana protested, picking up the silver Wolf on his back, which proved quite difficult seeing how big she was.

* * *

"No, Rakuen, don't let that brat get the girl!" Sashenka shouted "Get the girl! **Get the girl**!"

"I'm on it!" Rakuen called behind him as he jumped off the HOLY car. He kicked a large stone into the air, caught it, and threw it at Tachibana.

* * *

Tachibana moved just in time to not get hurt; the stone hit the ground and instantly exploded. Tachibana turned and took off. Tachibana's TachiBalls dropped the items they were carrying and began to block the stones being pelted at them.

Tachibana could tell that the Wolf he was carrying was changing. Its body was slowly disintegrating, like her friend, but changing into something else. Tachibana could feel the Wolf's blood seeping onto his clothing.

"Mm…" Groaned the Wolf…Except the Wolf wasn't a Wolf anymore. It had molded back into the blue eyed, Crescent Moon shaped haired, teenage girl from before. She had long, dark brown hair with obvious red highlights. At the bottoms of her hair was an assortment of two colors, silver and black. Her hair was also streaked in light brown streaks.

She wore a noodle strap, cerulean colored dress. She had a black Ring on her left wrist, a silver Crescent Moon on her right, a blue Star on her right ankle, and a sliver white Sun on the other. Upon her forehead was a yellow shell, and below the left side of her collar bone was an ice blue vortex. These were not jewelry; they were simply on her skin.

Both Rakuen and Tachibana were surprised by this, but they kept fighting.

"Ah!" Rakuen shouted "Get away, I have a mission to complete!" He fired at the TachiBalls again and again.

* * *

"Hey, are you okay back there?" Tachibana called behind his shoulder

"Err…" The girl on Tachibana's back growled "Kiba." The girl let all her anger, all her hatred, towards the two men behind her out.

A boulder nearby disintegrated and the black Wolf reappeared out of the Sunlight. It kneeled.

"Get on Kiba." The golden ringed, blue eyed girl said

"What?" Tachibana said

"Get on. She can hold more than one…just two people."

Tachibana hesitated but clambered onto the Wolf. The strange girl slid down Tachibana's back to rest behind him on Kiba. Kiba unfolded her magnificent Phoenix wings and flapped. They gently rose into the air.

"I'm sorry, Kiba, I'm getting blood all over your fur." The blue eyed girl said weakly

Kiba shook her head, "It's alright." She said gruffly

"Huh?" Tachibana looked down at Kiba's head in front of him.

"Yes…Kiba can talk…" The strange girl said, even weaker than before.

"Are you okay?" Kiba asked roughly

"I'll be fine."

Suddenly, a barrage of Fire Balls was pelting upon the three of them.

"Well, we're not out of the woods yet." Tachibana commented.

His TachiBalls appeared again and the green orbs blocked out most of the Fire Balls.

* * *

"Ryuho!" Scheris pointed above the mountain they stood on. "Look, isn't that Tachibana?"

They watched as Kiba tried to fly upwards.

"Yeah, and it looks like he and his friends could use some help. Zetsuuei!"

A rock nearby disappeared and Zetsuuei formed. Ryuho's Altar shot forward.

* * *

"Zetsuuei?" Tachibana said, puzzled. He looked downward and spotted Scheris and Ryuho. "Hey, um, we're going to be okay! My friends Scheris and Ryuho are going to help us!" The girl didn't answer. "Hey, are you okay?"

No answer came. Suddenly, a large Fire Ball slammed into Kiba's underside and they toppled over. Kiba, who was already weakened before, dissolved into the Sunlight again with a small yelp. Tachibana's TachiBalls caught him but they missed the strange girl and she continued to plummet towards the Earth.

* * *

"Zetsuuei!" Ryuho called

Zetsuuei swooped down and caught her. Ryuho's excellent Altar flew downwards and gently dropped her at Ryuho's feet. Tachibana landed near Zetsuuei.

"They shouldn't be able to find you up here." Scheris stated. She looked at who was on the floor. "Rouka?"

"I don't know her." Tachibana commented "But it sure seems like you know her, Scheris. I saved her from HOLY. Oh, and of course you two helped too."

"Was that a…Wolf…With wings?" Scheris asked

"I think its part of her Altar." Tachibana said.

* * *

Who is this strange girl? Why is she here, and why does she have two huge Wolves with her? She's been chased by this 'Sashenka' man for nine years, and a couple by HOLY. What's going on? Why does Scheris know here?


	2. Toboe, the Howling

Disclaimer: I do not own _s-CRY-ed_; however the Altar Wolf _Kiba, the Fang_ I do own.

Time: One year after series began.

Note: I would like to thank _Kenshinluva75_ and _InuYasha Rose1_ for reviewing my story. Thank you!

Note 2: I'm sorry for not updating my story in such a long time.

_Where the Wind Takes Me_

Chapter Two

Toboe, the Howling

"Will she wake soon?" Tachibana asked

"She should." Ryuho replied. "Tachibana, do you mind going outside for awhile? I need to think over some stuff alone."

Tachibana scratched his head, "Alright, if you say so, Ryuho."

As soon as Tachibana left, Ryuho called out Zetsuuei, "I know you're not still fainted, Toboe the Howling."

'Toboe' opened her eyes, "Don't miss a trick, do you? I see you've heard of my other self. May I ask how much exactly?" Her hair had unwound itself during the night; now it was straight. The markings on her had strangely disappeared.

"I've heard plenty about you to know what kind of person you are." Ryuho said calmly, but fiercely. "What're you doing here? What do you want? As you are probably aware of, your reputation isn't one of the best, Toboe."

"My name's not Toboe; it never has, never will."

Ryuho narrowed his eyes, "Zetsuuei," Zetsuuei wrapped one of its purple tentacle-like-strips around 'Toboe' and the bed beneath her, trapping her. "Then who are you?"

'Toboe' could feel the fear creeping into her, "Let me go! You don't want to see me when I'm trapped, no one will ever!"

"Not until you've answered my questions." Ryuho persisted.

'Toboe's' eyes began to turn dark green instead of the light blue color it was now. Ryuho could see the girl before him slowly disappear into the Sun, only to be replaced by the body parts of a Wolf.

'Toboe' snarled and growled; she bared a Wolf's fangs. 'Toboe's' face lengthened into a Wolf's snout. Now, the transformation was complete. 'Toboe' was no longer the human Alter User, but a silver grey Wolf with green, thick, Butterfly wings.

"What the Hell is going on?" Ryuho shouted

'Toboe' snarled at Ryuho. She was relentless at struggling against Zetsuuei's bonds, lashing out and biting any part of the Altar she could.

Sturdy vines began to spring out from the ground and into the room.

* * *

"So… You know this girl?" Tachibana asked

"Yes," Scheris answered "She's my cousin, actually."

Tachibana looked at Scheris in surprise, "She's your cousin?"  
"Well, yeah." Scheris answered. "It's…complicated."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, a long time ago, I used to be in a very respectful home. I lived near my aunt and uncle's house, too. I used to play with Rouka all the time; she was my aunt and uncle's only child, and my best friend. We were really young; she was five, and I was six, when her parents found out she was an Altar User. They were horrified. They thought it to be some sort of disease and brought in this man named Sashenka Kagayaki to come in and look at her. He was very intrigued with her Altar powers; she's the only recorded person to ever be a Demonic Altar User."

"What's that?" Tachibana wondered

"It's when an Altar User uses such Altars that look like animals that have supernatural powers and gifts. Anyway, after finding that out, Rouka's parents threw her out. That man, Sashenka, began to chase her because he was so fascinated by her Altars. He disappeared a couple months after Rouka left. Years later, Rouka contacted with me. She told me she was living around on the Lost Ground and was doing alright.  
"That's when I left, too. And then, when I got into trouble, Ryuho found me. After becoming a member of HOLY, Rouka once again contacted me. Only this time, she had been captured by HOLY. She'd been captured not long after Kazuma was captured himself. With all the chaos of Kazuma, Rouka escaped. I thought I'd never see her again, but here she is."

"So…" Tachibana said slowly "What exactly is her Altar?"

"The Wolf you saw, Kiba."

"The black or the silver one?"

"She has two?" Scheris asked.

"Yeah, I think so. I saw the silver one first, when she was facing HOLY's soldiers. She seemed so frightened. But when that one disappeared, and I stepped in to help, she called another one, the black one."

"That's strange." Scheris commented "I thought she only had one."

* * *

"What the hell?" Ryuho shouted.

Toboe snarled at Zetsuuei dangerously.

'No…' Rouka thought, 'Toboe, no! He's Scheris's friend! Just let go, Scheris's Friend! Tell your Altar to let go, and Toboe will stop!'

The vines that had grown out of the ground attacked Ryuho. Zetsuuei used its other purple arm to block the vines from him.

* * *

"Hello," Kanami said cheerfully to Scheris and Tachibana, "It's nice to see you again, Miss Scheris. Who's your friend?"

"Oh, this is Asuka Tachibana," Scheris replied "Tachibana, this is Kanami."

"It's nice to meet you." Tachibana said with a smile.

"Where is Ryu-kun?" (I think that's what Kanami calls him; I don't remember) Kanami wondered. "Is that lady from last night still here?"

"Yes, and her name is Rouka. Ryuho's inside. Where's Kazuma? Shouldn't you be home; he might be worrying about you." Scheris commented.

"I told him I'd be coming up here to say hello today," Kanami answered. "I'll just say hi to Ryu-kun and be on my way."

Kanami opened the door to the small, two bed roomed house Scheris and Ryuho had been sharing for a while now. She closed the door behind her. She walked to Scheris's room. The door was opened. Kanami was curious, and supposed that Ryuho was in there, but wasn't quite sure why.

When Kanami walked into the room, she let out a loud squeak upon seeing the chaos within it.

Ryuho looked behind him to see what was going on, "K-Kanami?" He struggled to say these words, seeing as he had to keep Toboe on the bed and from getting clobbered by the vines. "Kanami, run!"

But Kanami seemed to be frozen. She'd never seen something like this before. Toboe's eyes landed upon Kanami, who looked on the verge of fearful tears. Toboe forced the fear back. She had to stop. Toboe closed her eyes.

The vines from the ground slowly began to go back under. Toboe stopped struggling, and she began to disappear into the sunlight coming from the window. Her Wolf parts began to change back into the human that was Rouka.

Rouka was breathing heavily, and was fainted. Her eyes, though closed, showed distress.

Kanami fell to her knees, panting, eyes opened wide. It was not only what she saw that had frightened her. It was what she felt from Rouka's subconscious. And it wasn't just fear that she felt. There was an overwhelming feeling of sympathy Kanami felt towards this teenaged girl.

* * *

Pain. Grief. Betrayal. Anger. Sadness. Hatred. Hurt. Fear.

She'd felt it all. Rouka had gone through so much in nine years; it was unbelievable. Kanami had felt it all, what Rouka had been through. The feelings coming from Rouka, the feelings of practically no happiness in her life, the feeling of always being on the edge, trying to escape someone who was always chasing her, hit Kanami in a huge wave of depression.

* * *

"Kanami," Ryuho spoke. "Stay away from her; she's dangerous."

"But," Kanami protested. "I felt…What was in her subconscious."

"What did you feel?" Ryuho asked, knowing her Altar power.

"I felt so much…Most of it was…Pain, fear, and anger…It…It frightens me. She's not dangerous. She's just…Been through a lot, that's all."

Ryuho watched Rouka as she slept, her breathing regulating itself.

'Who are you, Toboe the Howling?' Ryuho thought in his mind. 'Are you really the one with the bad reputation, or the one with the bad past? Which are you? Or are you both?'

* * *

"Bye," Kanami called behind her as she walked down the hill in which Ryuho and Scheris lived.

"Say hello to Kazuma for me!" Tachibana called to her.

"Okay!" Kanami waved goodbye to them.

"Now what?" Tachibana asked.

"We tell Ryuho about Rouka," Scheris stated

"Rouka?" Ryuho asked, an eyebrow raised.

Scheris began to tell Ryuho about Rouka.

* * *

"Someone talking about me?" Rouka limped outside, where the three of them were sitting.

"Rouka!" Scheris exclaimed upon seeing her.

"It's nice to see you too, Scheris." The girl said, smiling, although the sad look in her eyes remained the same. She sat down as well.

"I see you're finally awake." Tachibana stated

"Thank you," Rouka said to him. "for saving my Altars and I."

Rouka closed her eyes briefly, as if listening, and then continued, "Kiba and Toboe say thank you to all three of you."

"So there are two of them now?" Scheris asked

Rouka nodded, "Yes."

"May I ask how you got such a bad reputation?" Ryuho wondered

"It's simple, really." Rouka said dryly. "When ever I get angry, Kiba comes to fight along side me. Whenever I am scared, Toboe comes to protect me."

"That's interesting," Tachibana stated. "But, can you call them out at will? I mean, just like right now? Without having to feel anger or fear?"

"I don't know," Rouka answered "And I really don't feel like trying either. You see, whenever Kiba or Toboe got out, I never tried to control them. They just run loose and attack anyone they want. I have never tried to control them, and I don't really feel like trying."

"So it was them who built up that reputation?" Ryuho asked

"You could say that." Then, Rouka's voice grew sad, "But…I'm to blame for most of it. I never tried to control them. Actually, most of the time, I willed them to hurt." Rouka looked away in shame.

"We all feel things we sometimes regret," Tachibana commented, trying to lighten up Rouka's mood

"Yeah, well, I'll bet your feelings never unleashed a demonic Wolf with wings, has practically no mercy, and can shoot fire or make vines grow out of nowhere."

"Don't be so hard on yourself," Scheris stated

Rouka looked up at the sky and continued, "Yet…Despite those facts, I can't help but wish that they'd always be here for me. I can't imagine where I'd be without them. They've saved me so many times I lost track."

"They sound pretty cool to me," Tachibana said with a smile.

"I wish you could meet them," Rouka said "They're great to talk to!"

'I've never seen Rouka open up to anyone like this before.' Scheris thought silently to herself, a smile crossing her face. She leaned against her arms, watching Rouka and Tachibana talk they were old friends.

_He seems like a nice friend._ Toboe stated.

**Yes, agreed.** Kiba said in her same rough tone.

'Yes, he is, isn't he?' Rouka agreed.

* * *

Well, Tachibana and Rouka seem to get along just fine. Scheris is happy to see her long lost cousin again. Although he still has many questions about her, even Ryuho seems to be okay with Rouka. What will happen next, when Rouka meets Kazuma? Will she attack him? What has Rouka gone through in the past to make Kanami freeze like she did?


	3. Kaiya, Friend of Kazuma

Disclaimer: I do not own _s-CRY-ed_, but the characters _Rouka_, _Kiba the Fang_, and _Toboe the Howling_ I do own.

Note: I would like to thank _Queen Caira_ for reviewing my story. Thank you!

_Where the Wind Takes Me_

Chapter Three

Kaiya, Friend of Kazuma

"Who was that little girl?" Rouka asked Scheris.

"Who, Kanami?" Scheris wondered, "Oh, she's the little sister of Kazuma. He lives down that way," She said pointing towards the town, "They live together in the town. He's an altar user as well."

"Kazuma, huh?" Rouka raised an eyebrow, "He sounds interesting. I think I'd like to meet him."

Scheris shook her head, "You can't leave right now! HOLY might still be around! It's too dangerous."

"Well I don't want to stay in hiding forever!" Rouka exclaimed, "It's not my style. I'd rather stand up and fight them!"

"Yes, and we've seen how effective that's become," Ryuho walked towards the two, "You almost died! Maybe, just once, you could lay low for awhile, just until HOLY leaves this town."

Rouka glared at him. She sighed and nodded in agreement, "Fine. But just for awhile."

* * *

"Kanami!" Kazuma called. He wore a long black coat over his clothes, a replacement to his usual mid-drift one. He walked to his and her house, "Hey, Kanami! Where are you?"

"I'm right here, Kazu-kun." Kanami stated.

"There you are," Kazuma said with a grin, "You scared me a bit there."

"Sorry." Kanami said

"Oh, it's okay." Kazuma said, "Had any adventures lately?"

"I went to Scheris and Ryuho's yesterday."

"Anything happen there?"

"I met a lady named Rouka."

"Rouka? Is she nice?"

"I…I didn't really get a chance to talk with her. But she seemed nice, but really tired."

"Oh, okay then. How've you been lately? I know I haven't been home lately, but I've been…Busy."

"I'm fine. And I didn't tell anyone that you were gone."

"Thanks, Kanami." Kazuma said, looking down at his adopted little sister with admiration.

* * *

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!" A scream rang around the cliff in which Ryuho and Scheris lived.

"What's wrong?" Tachibana came running out of the house, followed by Ryuho and Scheris.

Mimori pointed at the huge black Wolf, Kiba, fearfully.

Yawning, and pushing Toboe slightly off her stomach, Rouka sat up from behind a nearby bush, "What's up?" She asked sleepily.

Kiba snarled at Mimori.

"Rouka, she's not an enemy!" Ryuho stated.

"I don't know if I can control Kiba or not!" Rouka said, "I hadn't even called them out!"

"Well at least try!" Tachibana said.

"Kiba, stop." Rouka said firmly.

Kiba snarled and growled at Mimori, fangs bared. However, Kiba lowered herself and backed away from Mimori. She turned quickly, long black tail swishing in annoyance, and sat herself on the side of Rouka that was not occupied by Toboe's body.

Toboe, seeing no harm that could come to Rouka as long as Kiba was out, gently replaced her head, and front right paw, back onto Rouka's stomach to continue her nap.

"And who might I ask are you?" Rouka asked Mimori in a fierce voice. Kiba glared at Mimori, teeth still bared, ready to attack if need be.

"I'm a friend of Ryuho's and Scheris's. My name is Mimori Kiryu." Mimori answered.

"Oh." Rouka said, "Kiba, you can take a nap like Toboe if you like."

**I can not sleep until I feel there is no danger left.** Kiba answered, **Toboe can sleep because she does not have the job of protecting you, although she does do it to help me sometimes.**

"You view me as a threat?" Mimori asked, "You're the Wolf with wings and can talk!"

Kiba growled at Mimori in irritation, **You best keep your little mouth shut if you want to keep it!**

"Kiba!" Rouka shouted.

Mimori walked over to where Ryuho, Tachibana, and Scheris were relaxing on the floor. She sat down next to them, saying, "Such lovely people you're keeping around these days. Who is she? I think I remember seeing her before, but I can't remember where."

"Her name is Rouka." Tachibana told her.

"And she's my cousin." Scheris said too.

"Really?" Mimori asked, "She seems so…Angry."

"Yeah…" Tachibana said.

"Do you have any idea where I might have seen her?" Mimori asked.

"Depends on what time you saw her," Ryuho commented.

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, nothing." Ryuho said quickly.

"There's something you three aren't telling me," Mimori stated.

"It's just…You might get the wrong impression." Tachibana told her.

"Why? Just tell me where I might have seen her."

"Probably in the HOLY Prisoner's Database." Ryuho said dryly.

"Why?" Mimori said in alarm.

"Scheris," Rouka called to her. She was sitting up, Kiba sitting alert on her right side, Toboe sitting up sleepily on her left, but waking up. "Kiba, Toboe, and I want to go down to the town."

"No," Scheris said. "The HOLY members will be searching for you down there."

"But we're bored!" Rouka whined, acting upon not only her own feelings, but on what she felt emitting from the two Wolves beside her.

"Then go find something to do!" Scheris commented.

**I could –. **Kiba began.

"No, Kiba." Rouka interrupted her.

Toboe sighed. She walked to Mimori, sniffing lightly at her. Mimori looked at her fearfully. Toboe sniffed her hair, smelling in her scent. Toboe turned around, sneezing slightly. Her mouth curved, revealing pearl white fangs in laughter.

_Humans all smell the same._ Toboe stated.

**Not Rouka.** Kiba corrected her. **She smells like us.**

_True; you are correct._ Toboe said, nodding.

Toboe walked back to her position at Rouka's left side.

_I'm hungry._ Toboe told Rouka.

"Alrighty, then." Rouka stood, "Let's get you two some things to eat."

Rouka wound her way around the small party in front of her, the two Wolves following her. They went inside the house.

"They're going to eat everything you two have in there, aren't they?" Tachibana asked with a chuckle.

Scheris nodded, laughing with him, "Well you can't very well blame them. They are Wolves, after all."

"And your cousin?" Ryuho inquired, an eyebrow raised.

"Just as much a Wolf as Kiba and Toboe." Scheris told them.

"Doesn't anyone else care that she might have been **in jail**?" Mimori said.

The other three looked at each other before looking at Mimori. Together, they shook their heads and said, "No."

* * *

_I want to leave!_ Toboe said impatiently, spreading her pretty wings, ready for flight.

"We can't," Rouka said. "The HOLY members –."

**Are nothing more than little worms.** Kiba said.

_We thank your cousin and her friends for worrying about us three,_

**But we can handle the HOLY members.** Kiba finished

"Yes, but what if they hurt the villagers." Rouka asked them.

_We'll go far away! _Toboe answered, _We just want to spread our wings a bit! _

Rouka scratched her head, thinking hard of what to do.

* * *

"Get the hell out of my house!" Kazuma shouted at the HOLD and HOLY members that were trying to get into the house.

"We are terribly sorry, sir." The HOLD member said, "We're just doing a routine check for a fugitive that you might be housing here."

"We're not housing anyone here!" Kazuma shouted again.

The HOLY member showed him two pictures, one of Rouka, the other of Kiba, "Have you seen either one of these?"

"No!" Kazuma said.

Kanami, who was in the room nearby, looped her head around the door frame. She looked at the picture of Rouka and whispered to herself, "Rouka…"

"Sir," The HOLD member said, "We must search your home. MOVE!"

"I'm not just going to sit back and let you stupid HOLD and HOLY members raid my home!" Kazuma said. "Kanami, run to safety!"

Kanami, temporarily frozen in spot, looked at Kazuma. Kazuma turned to her, that oh-so-familiar cocky grin playing on his face. She nodded, having found new courage. She ran out of the room and towards the back door.

The HOLD member rammed a fist into Kazuma's stomach, a grunt coming out of him.

"Stop it, you fool!" The HOLY member stated, "That girl's not the one we want!"

"Oh, but you are going to pay for hitting me," Kazuma said.

"He should be unconscious!" The HOLD member said.

"I'm not a weakling like you!" Kazuma shifted, his elbow coming full-force down on the HOLD's member's spine.

* * *

Kanami ran as fast as she could, chaos swirling around her. She could feel them, the villagers. They were scared; the HOLY and HOLD members had attacked more than just one of them. The villagers were panicking and they needed help now!

Up slopes, and down them, going up the cliff where Ryuho was. She had to get help; she had to warn Rouka to leave. They would surely check around their house!

"Ryu-kun!" Kanami shouted as she made it up the last stretch of the cliff, her hair slightly loosened out of its usually pink-red ribbon from the mad dash shed had just made.

"Kanami?" Ryuho said in surprise.

"You've got to help!" Kanami said breathlessly, panting hard as she tried to calm her breathing.

"What happened?" Ryuho asked.

"Where's Kazuma?" Tachibana wondered.

"Down at the village," Kanami said between pants, "HOLY and HOLD…They came to our house…Kazuma fighting alone…Rouka, in trouble…You've just gotta help!"

"Scheris," Ryuho commanded, "Get Rouka out of here! Tachibana, bring Mimori and Kanami somewhere safe. I'll get down to the village."

Scheris quickly stood and ran into the house, "Rouka!" Scheris looked around. Rouka, nor her Wolves were there any longer. "Rouka, where are you?" Scheris ran to the open window, shouting out of it, "ROUKA!"

* * *

Riding Kiba, Rouka closed her eyes as she felt the cool upper breezes blowing at her. Toboe howled with glee beside them.

"We should be getting back," Rouka commented.

_Why?_ Toboe asked

"The others have probably noticed we're gone by now."

Suddenly stopping in midair, almost jerking Rouka off, both Kiba and Toboe stopped.

"What's wrong?" Rouka asked in alarm.

Kiba raised her nose to the air, **I smell smoke.**

_And human blood._ Toboe agreed.

"The village!" Rouka said, "The HOLY members must have attacked!"

**It is our fault, Rouka. **Kiba stated.

_Let us fix this._ Toboe said.

Rouka nodded, "Quickly, to the village!"

With full force working behind their wings, the two Wolves flapped their wings as hard as they could, maneuvering them towards the village.

* * *

A scream wrenched throughout the village as the HOLY and HOLD members tried to calm the villagers down, without success.

"Get away from them!" Rouka's foot, having jumped off of Kiba's back, swung down hard to connect with the jaw of one of the members. She looked at him questioningly, "HOLD? Why are they here?"

Kiba and Toboe folded their wings tightly around their bodies, and they fell down hard on top of the soldiers.

"Kiba!" Rouka pointed towards a falling home. A small girl was frozen under the trembling building.

Kiba spread her wings and flew as fast as she could towards the child.

Toboe's eyes shined a dark green color, vines springing up everywhere, catching soldiers of both HOLD and HOLY in a web of sturdy green.

Kiba swooped under the little girl's legs and flew away swiftly. The building fell over just as Kiba got away. She carried the girl high into the air, searching for a safe place to put her down.

* * *

Sashenka grinned with satisfaction, "I see my plan successfully flushed her and her Wolves out."

Rakuen watched at the scene below in horror, asking, "You planned this? You wanted them to hurt the villagers?"

"I know this girl. Now that she has gained more control over her altar, we needed a way to get her out. And my plan worked. Just let those soldiers tire them out, and then we'll capture her."

"I can't believe you would purposely harm humans just for this girl." Rakuen said angrily.

"Just some girl? She's not just some girl! She's a murderer, and a fine specimen of a Demonic Altar User to examine."

"What is a Demonic Altar User?"

"Now's not the time to explain; maybe later."

* * *

"Rouka," Ryuho shouted. He, along with Zetsuuei, landed next to Rouka.

"Ryuho!" Rouka said in surprise.

"What happened?"

"How am I supposed to know?" Rouka asked indignantly. "I just got here!"

Kiba, having found a safe place for the girl, landed next Rouka. She growled at Ryuho.

"Kiba!" Rouka reprimanded her. But then she noticed that Kiba wasn't growling at Ryuho, but a HOLY soldier that was coming up behind him. "Ryuho, behind you!"

Toboe suddenly landed on top of the soldier, a grin upon her face.

Rouka sighed in relief.

* * *

"I think that's the last of them." Rouka said, feeling so very exhausted.

"I should go check up on the others," Ryuho commented.

"Alright." Rouka said, "I'll look around for more of the soldiers, just in case some of them are still around."

"Alright,"

* * *

Rouka sat down upon a rock, feeling her limbs grow heavy with exhaustion. She forced herself to stand; she needed to scout out for anymore of the soldiers.

"Kiba, Toboe," Rouka called them to her. "Do you smell anyone else in the vicinity?"

Kiba and Toboe raised their noses to the winds and nodded.

**I smell someone nearby.**

_Me too. This person…Is a bit different. I think this one is an altar user._

"Come on, we gotta find this one!"

Rouka, Kiba, and Toboe traveled around the small town, searching for the last soldier. And there he was: long, black coat, brownish-red hair, and brown-gold eyes. He looked about seventeen. It was Kazuma!

"Get out of here!" Rouka shouted at him.

Kazuma turned to her, wiping a smudge away from his cheek, "You're telling me? Why don't _you_ get out of here?"

"Kiba, Toboe," Rouka said.

Kazuma reached his arm forward, and his altar took hold of his arm.

"Shocking First Bullet!" Kazuma shouted, charging forward. His fist rammed into Toboe's side, knocking her backwards.

Snarling angrily, Kiba reacted and grabbed hold of Kazuma's altar arm. Kiba kicked at Kazuma's stomach, her claws digging into his side, but not yet able to tear his clothes.

"Kiba! Toboe!" Rouka ran forward; she was about to attack when Toboe shot forwards, head ramming into Kazuma's stomach.

"Annihilating Second Bullet!" Kazuma slammed his fist downwards, the force of the blow knocking Kiba and Toboe backwards. Cries of pain wringing from them, the two disappeared into the sun.

Rouka's vision began to blur. She felt as if part of her was trying to split away from her. Her knees buckled, but she wouldn't let herself fall.

"Who are you?" Kazuma asked.

"I could ask you the same question." Rouka retorted.

"I don't think you're in any position to be stubborn. I just want to know your name."

"Rouka." She said weakly. "And you are?"

"Kazuma, the Shell Bullet."

'Rouka? Kanami's mystery lady?'

'Kazuma…Where have I heard that name before?' Rouka couldn't think. Like wildfire, pain spread across her body. Rouka fell onto the floor hard, something ripping out of her.

Kazuma looked surprised when Rouka just simply fell to the floor. Shock rang through him when he noticed another girl, who had just simply come out of nowhere, standing in front of him. She looked around fourteen, the same age as he supposed Rouka was, and had grey-black hair. Thunder yellow eyes locked onto him, confusion and interest shined in them. The sun glinted off a tattoo of some sort upon her forehead; it was of a dark yellow, almost golden, shell.

Kazuma blushed wildly when he noticed that she was naked. Quickly taking off his jacket, he handed it to her. She took it with a smile, slowly wrapping it around her slim body. She buttoned it up.

"Who are you?" Kazuma asked.

Kneeling down beside Rouka, the girl answered, "My name is Kaiya." Kaiya placed a hand upon Rouka's head, stroking her head slightly.

"My name's Kazuma. How…How did you get here?"

"I'm not really sure." Kaiya answered. She looked up at Kazuma, "Do you have a place that she can stay awhile? She's quite worn out, and I'm pretty sure she is a friend of mine."

Kazuma scratched his head, answering, "I guess you two can stay at my house for awhile. But I have to go find my little sister later on."

"Kanami, right?" Rouka asked.

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"I'm not quite sure." Kaiya answered.

"Well, anyway, this way." Kazuma picked up Rouka.

Kaiya followed Kazuma, hugging the jacket tightly around her.

* * *

"Here, you and she can sleep in my room tonight." Kazuma offered, "I'll sleep on the couch.

Kaiya gave him a questioningly, "Why?"

"Cause the bed's softer than the couch."

"Yes, but it's your bed."

"It's fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Look, make yourself comfortable; there should be some food in the fridge if you get hungry." Kazuma walked into his bedroom, placing Rouka gently on his bed. Walking back out, he said, "I'm gonna go find Kanami. Stay inside the house, and don't open the door for anyone you do not recognize, alright? Oh, and when I leave, lock the door."

Kaiya nodded. Kazuma walked out the door, and closed it.

"Be safe, Kazuma." Kaiya called after him.

When he was gone, Kaiya quickly locked the door. She sat down upon the couch in the living room.

* * *

Kazuma ran up the cliff. He knew that Ryuho lived up there, and also knew that this would be the first place Kanami would've gone, if she made it successfully.

* * *

"Sashenka," Rakuen whined, "It's been hours since that dude left. Are we going to complete our mission or not?"

"Now that we know he's gone for good, then let's go."

"Finally!" Rakuen said

* * *

_**NIGHT FALL…**_

Kaiya heard their steps before they were even near the house. She had to hide Rouka; she knew, somehow or another, that they were after her. Kaiya looked around when she noticed the loose floorboards nearby. She pulled them up, placed pillows and blankets to pad it, and then placed the fainted Rouka inside. She then placed the floorboards over her. No one would be able to tell that the boards had been moved.

Kaiya had been so engrossed in her work that she hadn't noticed the knocking on the door. They were now bangs. Kaiya, having very good hearing, knew it wasn't anyone she knew. But she had to get out somehow.

The door was kicked open in a flash, the lock breaking.

Kaiya backed away from it.

Sashenka looked around. His attention turned to Kaiya, "Where is she?"

"I think it's very rude of you HOLY soldiers to just barge right in here." Kaiya said.

"Just answer the question!"

"She? She who?"

"I have no time for games!" Sashenka shouted, raising a hand to Kaiya.

"Sashenka!" Rakuen stopped him from slapping her by grabbing his hand and lowering. "Excuse my friend, ma'am. We're looking for a fugitive; you wouldn't happen to know where she is, would you?"

"No, I'm sorry." Kaiya answered.

"Sashenka, I think we'd better leave." Rakuen commented, "She didn't see anyone. We might as well go look for her some more, somewhere else."

"No, I saw her come in here!"

"I did too! Maybe she left!"

"But she can tell us where she went! She's obviously got to know!"

"Are you two leaving any time soon?" Kaiya cut in.

"Yes, ma'am." Rakuen stated. "We were just leaving. Thank you for your time. Uh…Sorry about the door."

Rakuen grabbed his bald friend and pulled him out the door. Kaiya quickly closed the door, sighing.

* * *

"What're you doing?" Sashenka asked angrily, "We're supposed to be finding Rouka!"

"And I really don't think she's there anymore."

"You didn't even check the house!"

"Too bad! It's not right to just go and bust into someone's house. These people have rights too,"

"We're on the Lost Grounds! Who cares about their rights?"

"We're supposed to care! We're the police of this area! We're supposed to enforce the law, not break it."

Rakuen and Sashenka began to walk back towards their car.

"Now look, we can look for Rouka some more tomorrow morning." Rakuen told Sashenka, "For now, I'm tired. Let's turn in."

Sashenka shook his head, "I'm not tired yet. Look, I'll look some more for the fugitive. I'll see you in the morning."  
Rakuen nodded, "Alright. Don't stay out too long."

"Agreed," Sashenka said.

Rakuen left. Sashenka turned right back around, looking at the house that he and Rakuen had just left.

"I saw you and your little friend take her into that house," Sashenka said to himself, "I'm not about to let you keep me from my prize, the one that I have been trying to get for nine years. Especially not since I'm so close to getting her! If Rouka wants her little friend back, she'll have to turn herself in."

* * *

"Let me go!" Kaiya tried to pull her arm out of Sashenka's bone-crushing grip, "You have no right to do this!"

"Oh, you think I care about your rights?" Sashenka laughed. Sashenka pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and dropped it on the floor with his free hand. He began to pull Kaiya out the front door.

"Let go!" Kaiya cried.

"Not a chance!" Sashenka dropped low, bringing his shoulder up under Kaiya. He brought her up and carried her out the door like a sack of potatoes.

"**KAZUMAAAAAAAAAAAA**!" Kaiya screamed.

* * *

"Thanks for taking care of Kanami." Kazuma said tensely to Ryuho.

"No problem." Ryuho answered stiffly, "Anything for my little friend."

"We'll see you again soon, Ryu-kun." Kanami stated.

"Yeah, and take care kiddo."

"Let me come down with you," Tachibana offered.

"Me too!" Scheris said worriedly, "I want to see if Rouka's alright."

"Okay,"

The small group of four began their descent from the top of the cliff and down to the village. As they neared the base of the cliff, Kazuma's ears picked up the distinct sound of Kaiya's voice.

"Kaiya?" Kazuma said.

"Who's Kaiya?" Kanami asked

"She's a friend of Rouka's." Kazuma answered.

_KAZUMAAAAAAAAAAAA!_

Kazuma's head raised up, alert, "Kaiya!"

Kazuma bound down the rest of the way, followed by Scheris, Tachibana, and Kanami. When the reached the house, it was plain to see that something had happened. The house door had been completely ripped off its hinges and thrown rudely aside. The house seemed very grim.

"Damn those bastards!" Kazuma shouted.

The group went inside.

* * *

"Kaiya!" Kazuma called.

"Rouka, are you there?" Scheris said.

The group searched the house as efficiently as they could, but couldn't find a trace of Rouka, or Kaiya.

"Well they couldn't have just disappeared." Scheris stated.

"Kanami, see if you can find any of their subconscious." Kazuma said.

"Okay," Kanami agreed. She closed her eyes, listening for anyone's subconscious that might be inside the house, "Rouka! She's under the floorboards in the living room!"

Scheris, Kanami, and Kazuma raced to the living room. Meanwhile, Tachibana looked around the front entrance to the house.

* * *

"Rouka!" Scheris cried out when Kazuma had finally pulled her out from under the floorboards.

Groaning, Rouka said, "Where am I? What happened?" Then, suddenly realizing when she had fainted, "Toboe! Kiba!"

"It's okay, Rouka." Scheris said soothingly. "You're not in any danger anymore!"

"You!" Rouka said, pointing at Kazuma. "Kiba! Toboe!"

The two Wolves formed immediately, growling and bearing their fangs.

"Rouka, they're not enemies." Kanami told her.

"Did you see where Kaiya went?" Kazuma questioned.

"Kaiya?" Rouka said, confused. "Who's Kaiya?"

"Guys, I think I found something!" Tachibana shouted from near the entrance. He walked into the living room and found the paper Sashenka had left, also signed by him.

"Is it a note?" Scheris asked.

Tachibana opened the note and nodded, "It's a ransom note."

Tachibana read the note aloud. The note said,

_Rouka,_

**Also known as Kiba the Fang,**

**Along with the other wolf counter part,**

_I, Sashenka, of the HOLY military, claim your friend Kaiya for the time being. If you want her safe, and unharmed, you must abide by my rules:_

_1: You must turn yourself in_

_2: You must turn Kiba, and the other Wolf in_

_3: You, and your Wolves, must listen to everything I tell you_

_These are my conditions. Unless followed, Kaiya will be brought to HOLY for further inspection. _

**_Sashenka,_ Chief Commander of HOLY Unit 12**

"Damn those HOLY members!" Rouka shouted angrily, "And who in the world is Kaiya?"

_Oh no, they got Kaiya._ Toboe stated

**This is most troublesome. **Kiba said

"Wait, you know this Kaiya person?" Rouka asked

_Of course._ Toboe answered

**She, like us,** Kiba said **Are part of us, and you. We know all those of whom you possess.**

"What do you mean?" Rouka inquired.

**Like when I split from you,**

_And when I split from you and Kiba. There will be more splits in your altar._

"And you two never told me this?" Rouka asked indignantly.

_It's not that we didn't want to._ Toboe commented

**It's that we are not aloud to.** Kiba told them

"Okay, is anyone else as lots as I am?" Kazuma asked

"Yup," Tachibana answered. "You got me."

"Please explain," Kanami said politely.

"Tachibana, do you remember what I told you about Demonic Altar Users?" Scheris asked. Tachibana nodded. "Well, this is part of Rouka's. Well, Rouka also holds Demonic Power. Every time Rouka gets stronger, she gets an over fill of Demonic Power. When that happens, her altar splits into more. Rouka's altar started out with just Kiba. When she grew stronger, she and Kiba got too much Demonic Power, and Toboe split from them. Rouka, Kiba, and Toboe must have gotten too much Demonic Power, and that's why Kaiya split from the three."

"What I'm still confused about is," Kazuma said, "Why was Kaiya a human, if Kiba and Toboe are Wolves?"

"Because," Rouka answered, "Kiba and Toboe got stronger. Their Wolf forms are more powerful than their human forms. You see, in their Wolf forms they not only can fly, but they also have keener vision, eyesight, and smell. Plus, they can also control some sort of element. It's not until they get strong enough to hold their Wolfish form until they can change from being human."

They others around her looked at her with confusion in their eyes.

Rouka sighed, "Kazuma, Kanami, get towels or blankets. We'll give you a demonstration if you want."

Kanami stood and went to find blankets. A moment later, she came back with long blankets. She handed them to Rouka.

Wrapping the blankets around them, Rouka asked, "Will you two show them your human forms?"

The two Wolves nodded, sitting down. Their eyes opened wide, Kiba's eyes shining a bright, dark red; Toboe's a bright, dark green. Soon, their whole bodies shined brightly with their respective colors.

When the light cleared, the Wolves Kiba and Toboe were replaced with the humans that were Kiba and Toboe. Their eye colors remained the same, and their long, flowing hair was the same color as the Wolf form's fur. A silver Crescent Moon marked Kiba's right wrist; a black Ring marked Toboe's left wrist.

Kiba seemed a little older than Toboe, and was also very mature for her age. Toboe looked around the same age as Rouka, and seemed quite innocent. In all, the two once-Wolves were now gorgeous humans.

"There, you see," Rouka said. "I'm not lying."

Rouka's friends sat in front of her, eyes wide, mouths agape. Expressions were of the class of surprise and shock.

* * *

Rouka's altar has once again split, this time revealing the beautiful Kaiya. Sashenka has kidnapped her, and left a ransom note. Rouka and her two Wolves must listen to everything he says, and turn herself in. Otherwise, Kaiya will be gone forever. Will Rouka turn herself and her Wolves in? Or will she leave Kaiya there with Sashenka and the other HOLY members? Why is Sashenka so obsessed with Rouka and her Wolves?


End file.
